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Guides · Cleveland, Ohio

Running a home-based business in Cleveland, Ohio

Yes, but on narrow terms. The Codified Ordinances of the City of Cleveland permit a customary home occupation for gain as an accessory use in a Residence District (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 337.23(a)(2)). It must be carried on in the main building or a rear accessory building and need only customary home equipment. The code allows no nonresident help, no trading in merchandise and no personal physical service. In a One-Family or Limited One-Family District you can't display a sign or other outward evidence of the business. The section Corpus carries doesn't mention a home occupation permit. A person in business must also file a declaration of estimated income for the city income tax (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 191.1303).

Last checked 2026-11-01. General information, not legal or tax advice.

What the city code allows at home

These rules apply to accessory uses in a Residence District.

  • A customary home occupation for gain is allowed in the main building or in a rear building accessory to it, requiring only customary home equipment (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 337.23(a)(2)).
  • No nonresident help may be employed for the home occupation (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 337.23(a)(2)).
  • No trading in merchandise may be carried on, and no personal physical service may be performed (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 337.23(a)(2)). The section doesn't say what counts as a personal physical service, so ask the city's zoning office about your kind of work.
  • In a Limited One-Family District or a One-Family District, no sign or other outward evidence of the occupation may be displayed on the premises (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 337.23(a)(2)).
  • In a Multi-Family Residential District, a home occupation may be identified by a nameplate sign, as a wall or window sign of no more than two square feet. It can be lit, if at all, only by reflected light from a source not visible from beyond the lot. No such signs are permitted in a One-Family or Two-Family Residential District (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 350.13(e)).
  • Professionals have a separate rule. The office of a surgeon, physician, clergyman, architect, engineer, attorney or similar professional who lives in the main building is allowed there, with not more than one nonresident office or laboratory assistant (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 337.23(a)(1)).
  • The parking table sets accessory spaces for home occupation offices: 3 for each medical or dental office, and 2 for each clergyman, architect, engineer, attorney or similar professional office (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 349.04).

Licenses, permits and city taxes

  • Permit. The home occupation provisions Corpus carries for Cleveland don't mention a permit. Ask the city's zoning office before you start.
  • Income tax declaration. Anyone who engages in a business subject to the city income tax must file a declaration of the estimated income or profit or loss from the business, with the estimated tax due (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 191.1303). A person whose income is wholly from qualifying wages withheld by an employer needn't file one.
  • Annual return. The return is due on or before the fifteenth day of the fourth month after the end of the taxpayer's taxable year (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 191.1307).
  • What is taxed. The city taxes net profits that residents earn, and nonresidents' net profits from a business conducted in the city. For a sole proprietorship, the base is limited to the net profit reported on federal Schedule C or F (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 191.0501(a), (b) and (l)). This guide doesn't state the rate, so read the section.
  • Specific trades. Some businesses have their own licenses. An itinerant vendor needs a license before selling goods (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 682.01), and a rental agency needs a license from the Commissioner of Assessments and Licenses (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 682A.02).

Putting the business in an LLC

An LLC is formed with the state, not the city, so forming one doesn't take the place of any city license or permit above. Cleveland's income tax also reaches the net profits of resident associations, pass-through entities and other unincorporated business entities (Codified Ordinances of Cleveland § 191.0501(c)(1)).

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Read the code

Cleveland's code on Corpus has Section 337.23 on accessory uses, Section 350.13 on signs, Section 349.04 on parking and Chapter 191 on income tax.

Other cities

More in Ohio: Toledo · Columbus

Home business rules in all 96 cities we cover, each linked to the city’s own code.

Sources

Last checked 2026-11-01. Corpus is not a law firm and does not provide legal or tax advice.